Content marketing trends for 2019

If there is one overriding trend for social media marketing in 2019, it will be the necessity to plan.

Social media platforms are not new, obviously, and those who use them to establish or build their brand are experienced and purposeful. The days of throwing posts on to the proverbial wall to see what sticks are over. If you want to keep up with them, you’ll have to follow their lead. Here are some content marketing trends for 2019.

Plan it. Content marketing can be spontaneous, but that doesn’t mean you have to be. Look through your goals for the year and determine how best to match it with either new content that you or your staff will create, or repurposed content you expect from other sources. Take a look back to see what worked—and what didn’t—last year.

Be original. It’s tempting to rely on the work of others to get you going, but more than 75 percent of consumers indicate that they prefer content that relates directly to them. That means you’ll have to be creative and you’ll have to get to know your audience better than your competitors do. Avoid sensationalism, or ‘click bait.’ If you don’t deliver what you promise, you’ll turn potential customers off.

Tap micro-influencers. Look for local and national leaders in your industry and interact with them. Make sure to include some kind of link back to your business. Also, it shouldn’t be a one-way street. Ask them if they’d like to post content to your channels, or write a guest blog.

“Okay, Google.” With the expansion of audio devices like the Amazon Echo, more or more consumers are asking questions instead of typing into search engines. Develop your content—at least some of it—to answer questions. Think about how you would ask a question and plan accordingly.

Try new things. If you haven’t experimented with video or stories yet, now is the time to start. Most platforms allow for such features and have help to make them easy. As algorithms continue to change, fresh content that attracts—and keeps—consumers will continue to rank high in newsfeeds and search results.

Get lit on analytics. Learning from your previous work saves time and money and it will keep your customers happy, too. Concentrating on what worked well before and leaving behind what didn’t will help convince your customers that you are paying attention to them, whether they tell you directly, or not. Make sure to make full use of the analytics features on your social media platforms, or work with a firm that can help, so you can market yourself most effectively.

What other content marketing trends do you foresee for 2019? Let us know in the comments!